A childhood trip to the emergency room inspired Dr. David Park to become a doctor. “It was traumatic for my mother,” he says. “I was taken to the ER, half of my face was split open, and within a few hours, I was sewn up and it healed well. Knowing that the human body can be put back together like that caused me to think about becoming a doctor.”

As he entered medical school, Dr. Park had the idea he would be become a heart surgeon. “I was in awe of working on the human heart,” he says. He earned his Doctor of Medicine from University of Missouri-Kansas City in 1988, graduating with honors, and received a fellowship from the Mid-America Heart Institute at St. Luke’s Hospital. After five years as a resident general surgeon and chief general surgeon at Emory University, he moved into private practice and has continued to work in this field since then. In that time, he has also developed a specialized interest in various vein health concerns, which he now treats in his role with VeinInnovations.

While working on the human heart was a major inspiration in his early career, Dr. David Park found that these surgeries became mundane over time. “It was the same operation over and over,” he says. “I was turned off by that.”

General surgery proved to be the perfect solution, him with a varied workload that kept him refreshed and engaged. To broaden his professional and intellectual scope further, Dr. Park branched into vein disorders, which he has found especially gratifying in terms of their mental challenge. Patients come in with a wide range of problems that require individualized treatment. “What I like best is that it’s a fairly rapid process,” Dr. Park says. “Seeing the before and after is gratifying.”

More than cosmetics

In his work with VeinInnovations, Dr. Park regularly meets with patients who hold misconceptions about the vein treatments offered. The most common such misconception is that vein treatments only have cosmetic benefits. “It’s a nice benefit to having this done, but it is significantly more than aesthetics,” Dr. Park says.

Dr. Park enjoys taking time to educate patients on the benefits, and to address their concerns about the treatment process. “The most common concern is how painful this is going to be,” Dr. Park says. “I reassure them that most patients say it is much better than they expected. I’ve had them done myself and I was able to tolerate it and I can attest to and empathize with their fears. But it isn’t going to be as bad as what they are anticipating.”

Through this process, Dr. Park enjoys the ability to sit down and get to know his patients, while also allowing them to learn more about him.

Building relationships

“I like engaging with patients, and I look forward to helping them feel better and look better, and the process of getting to know them individually over time,” Dr. Park says. “That’s fun. People come from various backgrounds and stories, and then I’ll share my story.”

Since patients often come into the office for a number of appointments before, during and after treatments, there is ample time to strengthen these relationships and make sure each patient gets the attention and experience they deserve. It also helps that VeinInnovations offers a full spectrum of services that can be provided in-office. “I don’t have to send patients off elsewhere,” Dr. Park says. “We perform everything in our office.”

If you are currently suffering with a venous disease or other vein health concerns, contact the VeinInnovations team today to learn more about how we can help.